Chapter 2

"Aurora, that's enough! It was just a stupid post! Why do you have to be so petty?"

"You made Bella cry. Apologize to her. Now."

My heart felt like it had been dragged into an abyss.

I had done nothing, yet I was the one who had to make amends.

My voice was coated in a layer of frost. "Apologize to her? For what? What did I do wrong?"

Enzo, ever the hothead, sounded like a cornered animal. "You have the nerve to talk back? In this house, making Bella cry is crossing the line!"

"I'll count to three. Apologize now! Or you'll answer to me when I get back!"

My mother's voice came from the background.

"Enzo, don't talk to Aurora like that. She's your sister."

Then, speaking into the phone, she said, "Aurora, your brother has always been hot-headed, you know that. Don't take it personally."

"Tonight was just a spur-of-the-moment dinner. We didn't call you because we thought you'd be bored. Don't read too much into it."

My mother's flawlessly biased words were like a blunt instrument to my chest, crushing it over and over.

After a long pause, I spoke coldly.

"You don't have to explain. After all, you're the real family."

"There's no place for me in this house anymore."

It was the truth, but my words hit a nerve. My mother's voice suddenly shot up an octave.

"Aurora! How can you say that?"

"So we didn't invite you to one dinner? Is that a reason to make such a scene?"

"What do you want to eat? I'll have my secretary wire money to your account. Go to that Michelin-starred place on the east side, the most expensive one."

Before she finished, my phone screen lit up. A sum large enough to buy a restaurant was deposited into my account.

"There. I've settled the bill. This matter is closed. Don't bring any more shame on this family."

She hung up before I could say a word. This time, I laughed out loud.

Was she trying to pay off a beggar?

Forget it. A family like this, a love like this… I didn't want it anymore.

I pulled up my contact list and dialed my best friend Jessy's number. "That key position at your fashion house you offered me… is it still open?"

There was almost no hesitation on the other end.

"Of course it is!"

"Aurora, I've been waiting three years for you to say that."

"When are you coming? I'll have a driver and the private jet on standby."

I didn't hesitate for a second. "Tomorrow. The sooner, the better."

After the call, the ache in my chest finally began to subside.

I once believed my life's purpose was loyalty to my family, to fulfill what I saw as the duties of a mafia princess.

I thought staying in the Moretti manor, by my parents' and brother's side, was my destiny.

But now, I felt a sense of release. All my past devotion had been meaningless.

It was late when the four of them returned to the manor. The smell of champagne and cigars wafted up the spiral staircase.

At that moment, I was tossing a few casual outfits into a minimalist suitcase.

Seeing this, my parents' faces hardened.

My mother rushed over, snatched the trench coat from my hand, and threw it onto the carpet.

"Aurora, what is this? Are you running away from home?"

"Didn't I just send you the money? What are you still making a fuss about?"

I bent down, picked up the coat, folded it again, and looked directly at her.

"A fuss? Who's the one making a fuss?"

"I saw the group chat. Did any of you ever consider me part of this family?"

The color drained from my mother's face.

"Aurora, listen to me, that was just your brother talking nonsense. He was drunk…"

I cut her off. "Don't bother. A family like this… I don't want it anymore."

My father, who had been silent until now, finally spoke, each word a condemnation.

"It was just a few jokes in a group chat. What does that prove?"

"You're being shortsighted, Aurora."

I'm shortsighted?

Fine. In their version of events, I was always the one at fault. I was done trying to defend myself.

I said nothing more and continued packing.

But then Bella rushed over, her eyes red-rimmed. "Aurora, did you see what I posted?"

"I'm so sorry, it's all my fault."

"If I hadn't come to this family, you wouldn't be so unhappy…"

She reached for my arm, her tears falling on my skin.

"Sister, please don't be mad at me, okay?"

"If anyone should leave, it should be me. You're the real Moretti daughter… and I'm nobody."

I stepped aside, avoiding her touch. "Stop the act. I'm not buying it."

I had barely used any force, but as if she'd rehearsed it a thousand times, Bella stumbled backward, tumbling toward the grand marble staircase behind her.

Her scream echoed through the entire manor.

Enzo bolted up from downstairs. He saw Bella collapsed at the bottom of the stairs, then looked up to see me standing on the second-floor landing.

His brow furrowed, and a sudden rage flared in his eyes.

He took the stairs three at a time and shoved me, hard.

The force of the impact sent me off balance. I fell backward, and my temple struck the sharp corner of a nearby table.

A sharp pain, then darkness.

Blood trickled down from my temple, seeping into the collar of my shirt.

My own brother, the one I shared blood with, had a look on his face that bordered on satisfaction.

"That's a lesson for you. Don't you ever lay a hand on Bella again!"

"We'll see if you dare try that next time!"

Seeing the blood on the floor, a flicker of instinctual panic crossed my mother's eyes.

She took half a step toward me.

But then Bella started crying again, and her attention snapped right back to her.

"Mama… maybe I should just leave. If I stay, I'll only cause trouble between everyone…"